Watchman supervisory automatic telephone system



July 3, 1945.- B. A. WALLACE WATCHMAN SUPERV I SORY AUTOMAT I C TELEPHONE SYS TEM Filed'June 12, 194s 2 sheets-sheet 2 nuEz-z br' BEFZ' HD1/312.25115'.

Patented July 3, 1945 T office WATCHMANSUPERVISORY'-AUTOMATIC 1 ITELEPHONE'SYSTEM l BertiAl Wallace; Chicago? Ill., assignor to Kellogg 'f Switchboard :andSupply Company,v Chicago, Ill.; acorporationof Illinois Applicationniune 12, 1943,'sena11N0. 490,691v

2o claims.l

.This .invention relates to watchman supervisory .automatic telephone systems.V The .Objectis to fprovidean.. automatic telephone system containf (ci. 17a-g2) .ing imlgnroved-t provisionsA for supervising the activities `of a watchman'. asI indicated. by his successive reportsfrom. stations located along his route. v

n GENERALDESCRIPTION Y The automaticv telephone' system disclosed'here- `in Iis arrangedfA to lserve' the. intercommunication l needs of a private establishment, such asadepartment store, factory,'warehouse, andthe like.

It is customary for such an establishment to em- .y

ploy a watchman to `make periodic-inspection tours of 'the premises -during 'the =night,on holi'- Y days, and thelike.

Itis also-,customary to providev stations; along the Watchmans route from-which thewatchman can call and report to the supervisor. 4 i

In a private establishment of the kind under consideration, local automatic-telephone,substations, attached to lines served by the-private Aauto- `matic exchange, are fusually available at each of the assigned report stations along'the'rout'e watchman to use the private automatic telephone system for making his reports. For vthis purpose,

a report' number is assigned which the watchman can call from any telephone vsubstation'desig- .nated for 'the purpose, and-thereby secure telephonic communication with the supervisor. '-Pro'- `visions are made' for automatic'allymakinga'permanent record f the station from which any -re .port call is made andof the time'of the call. l

The. object of 'the inventionmay now be Vrestated to be toiprovide.desirablefeaturesof -improvement in watchman' supervisory Systems'as above outlined. 1

y-According to one feature ofimprovement, iden'-A tiflcation ofV the station from which the watcha nemen estabushedzby' thexdialing of the'freiiort ,number is brokenidown responsive toa temporary open-circuit condition encountered whenever the report .number is dialedfand a new connection isthereupon s'et up, .underthe controlY of vthe individual lockout relay, directly" from the con cerned line to 'the station of thejvv'atchman.`

.According .to a related featurelthe accidental simulation of-v the above noted 4open-circuitcondition'does not ordinarily-result in the extension of the watchman, making itconvenientfori the i 25 of the concerned? 4ilinevtof the' supervisor`- station,` because suchI connectiondepends `j ointlyhupon the operation of theZ lockout relay. of af line andwthe loperation iof equipment lto .'Which Aconnection is n extended responsive-tothe calling'foi'thetreport number.

' Accordingv to a further feature ofl the invention, a group of control relays is-lprcvided'containing Ia separate relay set-for eachfroffthe report stations and these-setsof stationrelaysare arranged for a f sequential f `interlockiirigope-ration secured only 'if Athe-Watchman reports iromthe stations `in apreassigned lorder `vcin-sequence. Provisions are Amade vfor signalling thefsupervisor in Vthe-norl "mal manner responsive toi alc-all 'from' any station 'in its assigned order f sequencesand for signaling thesupervi'sor in a distinctly dierent manner `andA forsounding adistinctive alarm in the event that the watchman reports fronr aL 'stationother than the next one in the-orderliisequence.` 1

According to a-"furtherfeature,"delayedaction timing devicesv are lprovided iorsoundingan alarm in the event that 'the 'Awatchmanffails to-replace the Ireceiver at a' station 4following a' report call,

or fails to report from Athe'nexi,"station within' a preassigned time interval. According vtoa; related feature;aplurality'bf "differently timed devices are provided, enabling la' suitable -time 'interval to be assigned between any-station'and the next, according to the 'distance which the watchman must traverse. t

According' to a 'furtheffeaturaf thesequence with'which the watchmanj'is to visit' the'report-v ing stations ymay be variedj as desired bya suitable change jin the 'disposition 1 of j jumper connections between the rvterminals of-A the sets -of-` relays and the terminals of' the `concerned telephone Alines.

A further feature concernsthe automatic transmission ofv anV all-clear tone signal to the Watchman responsive to hiscalling of the report number'gfrom` any station in its-'preassigned order-of sequence' and within the 'preas'signed time Ainter-- val, and for automaticallyv Withholding this tone signa-1 otherwise. Arrangements are provided to enable the supervisor. to withholdthe al1-clear signal at anytime whenlhe'desires tojconverse l with the watchman on the nextjreport call.

l THE DRAWINGS`r v In the accompanyingdrawings, comprising Figs.

- 1 to 3, Fig. 1 is a schematic showingofithe private automatic telephone systemandthe relationto n man service;

Fig. 2 :isa'fcircuitdiagram of the equipment at the supervising station, together with a portion of the route-control relay equipment; and e Fig. 3 is a circuit diagram of the remaining portion of the route-control relay equipment and of certain portions of the automatic switching equipment.

' Figure 1 Referring now to Fig. 1, the automatic telephone system exemplied therein has a nominal capacity of 1,000 lines, the subscriber lines of the system comprising a number of hundreds groups, each hundreds group being served by a separate group of connectors, one such connector being indicated at C.

A number of selectors, such as that indicated at SE, are provided for interconnecting the lines of calling subscribers with an idle connector in any desired hundreds group. Each of the selectors has a finder such as F linked thereto, the finders usually being-of 100 line capacity, a desirednumber of them being provided for each hundreds group of lines. These nders are controlled in the Well-known manner, through the line circuits (such as LCI and LC2) of calling lines.

Telephone systems of this type are well knwn, but as a matter of review the general operation thereof is here stated.

When the subscriber at substation 30 desires to converse with the subscriber at station 3 I, for example, \he removes his receiver, whereupon the line relay included in the line circuit LCI (relay 34, FiggS) operates to mark the position of the calling line and to cause an idle finder, such as F, to make connection with the calling line, thereby extending the calling line toa selector such as digits in the desired number, the seized connector such as C makes connection with the desired one of the 100 lines in the concerned group, such as the line of substation 3|, following which ringing current is applied to the called line. Conversation may take place as soon as the called subscriber answers, talking current for the two lines being supplied from the concerned connector.

In the arrangement illustrated in Fig. 1, the report trunk circuit RTC is accessible from an otherwise unused .level of the selectors. The digit representing this level constitutes the report num ber to be called by the watchman.

The route-control relays are indicated at 5I. They are interconnected by common conductor 4I With the trunk circuit RTC. Each of the sets of station relays in the route-control group is connected With the terminals of a `report-station line by a jumper such as 33.

The operation (to be detailed hereinafter) is that, when a report call is made by the watchn man from a line such as 3U, through a finder such as F and a selector such as SE, to the report trunk .circuit RTC, a temporary condition is imposed on conductor 4|, and the finder and selector are cleared out, causing the line circuit LCI to go into lockout condition 'and extending a connection over jumper 33 to the concerned set of station relays, and thence to the supervising station.

Figure 2 Referring now to Fig. 2, the equipment shown therein includes a subset I for the use of the supervisor in answering calls from the watchman. Talking current is supplied to this subset through the windings of relay 2, which disconnects the call buzzer 4 and alarm bell 5, when the receiver is removed at the associated subset.

The supervisor is provided `with key equipment including alarm-control keys 6 to 8, with which alarm-supervisory lamps yl5 to 8 are respectively associated; start key 9; and answer keys II to I3,

` with which line lamps II to I3 are respectively associated.

Cable 52 contains a number of conductors interconnecting the equipment at the supervising station with the route-control equipment 5I.

The portion of the route-control equipment shown in Fig. 2 includes control relays 2l and 22 and time-delay relays 23 to 25. Relay 23, by its timing device 23', may be adjusted for a relatively short delay period (of perhaps half a minute), and is employed to time the length of a report call; relay 24, by its timing device 24', may be adjusted for a relatively long delay periodv (of perhaps ten minutes) sufficient to enable the Watchman to travel readily from one report station to the next, where the intervening distance is great; and relay 25, by its timing device 25', is adjusted for a normal delay interval (of perhaps ve minutes) to permit time for travel between report stations which are not more than a normal distance apart.

Figure 3 The portion of the equipment 5l illustrated in Fig. 3 includes the several sets of station relays, each set including three relays. Relays IA to IC comprise the set assigned to the first station on the watchmans route; relays 2A to 2C are assigned to the second station; and relays LA to LC are assigned to the last station. v

The -time register TR, associated with equipment 5I, includes register devices IR, 2R, and LR, assigned respectively to the rst, second, and last stations. This time register may be of the usuall moving-tape, multiple-punch type, with each of the register magnets such as IR, 2R, and LR controlling a separate punch.

Fig. 3 shows also a circuit diagram of a portion of the automatic switching equipment indicated in Fig. 1. vThis includes the dial subset 39 of the usual construction, interconnected by the usual twoconductor telephone line with the switchboard equipment by Way of a two-conductor jumper 32 at the mainframe MF.

The line circuit LCI, assigned to the line ci subset 30 comprises line, lockout, and cutoff relays 34, 35, and 36. The switchboard multiple (tip, ring, and sleeve conductors T, R, Aand S) of the line of substation 30 is accessible to nders such as F and to the connectors assigned to the concerned hundreds group of lines.

substation 30 is illustrated as being the rst report station on the route of the watchman. Ac-

cordingly, tip, ring, and sleeve conductors associated with the line of substation 3U are crossconnected, by the three-conductor jumper 33 on the main frame MF, to the three-conductor group 44 associated with the rst set of station relays (IA, IB, and IC).

The nder F is interconnected with the selector SE by a threeconductor link, including tip, ring, and sleeve conductors. The relay equipment and operating structure for the finder F and the selector SE have not been shown, as they may take any well-known or desired form. The operation ofztheetndermzi'sfcontrolledxinaithazusuaifmanner 1 ovenconductors 42 andi43.' of the 'line' circuiiLCl 'i wheni'arcallsis originated-:at-substationff'. i;

The report trunkfcircuit RTSI is1 accessibl'eitolall" ofthe/selectors oirfa .certain level'ithereof Tl'islv t1"11nk2'circuitE includesfili'ne relay f 314 Tand fifa .f pai-rf! ofi Asuccessively'foperablerele'asetre'lays -38--f`and r'3 951" DETAILED DESCRIPTIONA A' detaileddescription :oiithel :operationofstheff disclosed equipment will now be given;-

A. Startzn'g :thefwatc'h'f period Norm-allytli'efequipmentiin FigsfzZ :and '3 is :in itsfillustrated'condition.A At the-fbeginningrof af Watch period; thefsupervisoriactuatesi start keyi'fr e thereby applyingground:potentialiltofthe vassociatedstart conductor GST in;r cable f5 2f, :preparing -J operating and locking circuitsiforrceitainioffthe relayequipment''oi.""1'igl.`l 3.-*

A1. Station-one timing The grounding of v'conductor ST in cable 52 alsofcloses" acircuit itlirougliFarmaturefll its back contact'fcf eachoftheJC"relays'ioffFig: 3;? througl-ithe illustrated' jurniu'erl 4`connectionc asso' ciatediivth theback'cont'act'fofiai'mature' 4 of relay y1G?andi/loyer time'fcOnduCtirfTI',lzv for the- WindingLiofinormallinterval tiinedelay relaylj-v Relay 24 starts toattract' its-illustratedarmature against-'the retarding linfluence'iofftimirigfdevice 25". Ordinarily;- tlie Watchman" reach'es-^'and ree ports'-fromY the concerned station-'before -thrassigned-time=interval-expires;l y e B: Reporting from vthe nir-stfstation` i 'When-the"watchnian"reaches the nrstwstation;A he is expectedto' report from ythis"'station' by: re'- moving"the"'receiver (not showm' at'. substation 3 0*" and""di'aling' the singledifgitM report number corresponding to the selector level throug'hwhich" thetrunk'flcircuitRTG isvreachedl" Wh'enrthe receiver is removed-line relayi 34 op-r erateslresponsiveto themclosureofthe usualzdie-f rect-.current bridgefi-across the associated line, Upon so doing, it grounds the..associatedndercontrol conductors 442 iand .43 fthroughback icontacts .oilockout relay-351" Responsive :to the grounding-of` conductors' 42 and .43;anidle finder,A Whichrmay. ibeiassumedfton;

ly --restore'sfbefore .frelay i35 rhasrghad'v .timel'rto' Top: erate. The operation of lockout reIayFSSiat-L-thi's time is" accordingly merely preparatory@y Conductors42 and 43 are Anow ungroundedtoremove' fthe-f markingconditionfpreviously.imposedzthereom 70 The calling line is now connected, through .the-I tip landt ring conductors.` of! ftherunder-Tlv;1to1 the usualcrelayi equipmentif: (nottshown ofi the fseelectorfiSE, whereby fthe selector isvpreparedifori operationfin the usuak manner. Y

; indicating battery- 'potential "to" the associated* sleevesconductoris'.ithroumwiresistorlr40-nnd-tlieff lBzsrSeiaingzthezsreporttrunk'bircuitrRTCzf "e'sponsiveafto the dialinggof' the preassigned single-digitreportnumbenwhe selector SE asso-1 ciats itselff`wit1'r the"'leyel"`thereof to 'Whichthe report trunk'cir'cuitRTC is connected,` and then: performszits usual searching operation: The trunk` circuit RTC, is 'normal1y. maintained .in a selectable condition by thev connection of 'anpidley back icontarzzt otrelaye.. The .trunk .circuitRTC is accordi'ngliI seized the: .selector -SEL .Y Such t selectontli'ereupon appliesV a guarding sroundjpo--.v

tentil tothe sleeve 4conductor ofltheseizeditrunlnl= linetdguard suchitrunlifllineiromiseizure .by any` y subsequently@ searching,sele'cton. 4At., the.. ,same time;,linerelalylbfthe trunklcircuitRTCis op eratedaover.. the ,callingrlinar whereupon .release l relays .38 fand 3 91am operated successive1-y--` R-lf lay 39 "disconnects resistor 40 from the associated.A

sleeve conductor and transfers it into connec` tion with conductor# Il, extending from the trunk circuit RTC-,.toa-the groupfcontrol relays 7shown f normal condi-tio 'and'the-'seriescircuit'ffi*relays rendered# sloweactin'gf, -as -b'yitheindicated-topper line-relay 134U`reoperatre'sfbecause thetreceiver has-j not been replaced at^substation 730i Upon reopr erating, line relay 34 againapplies ground potential to the armatures of the still-op'erated lockoutmrelay 35-.cY Groundmpotential onntheztlower armature gofz'relayf:35-fclosessa: holding.;circuit:*for

` such.':armatura-1` wherebyin'elayi- 35-rs1=maintainediI operated until! theefreceifueri'isffsubsequently fre-eplaced-fiatrthercallingieubstationr. Conductors :4Z-i and 43 are maintained disconnected at'tliisrftimev` bwrelays 5 and:vareseonsequentlynnoti faire cted during-:fthe#nowestablishedelockoutnconditioniaofr thaliriecircuitiLGl;

' B4'.- R'ldulAcperates l Thefgrnund-ing'nof ther-inner-ranmaturefof; relay 35 lineirelays34-eresults iinthe iextension'fzof" groundmpotential-,f,overwthei yslfeeveT conductor rin'i to-iftherflower aWindingciterminalif'of reiay lAr' A- circuitiiisathereby closed'iforiztheewindingi'oilrielayY lAr.,throug-h' thevncrmallyV clo'sed:ccntacts` con-l fronticontact'ofthefoperatedfrelayf'920i thetrunkl circu-itfRTCf, andfthroughzresistorc40 to battery;my Relay?- IA-'t'nereuponr :operateszl 'andi-'closesf .fafloca-l f locking circuitif.forr-.itselniby Way ofriits y arnaturei 5 Aanduthei associatediresistor; at *fthe-same Vtimer disconnecting a'ts.swinizling-,fromitheconfirmen:connA ductor 4 l. e

B5. Trunk circuit Raro-clears oui B6. Recording me time and the reporting station A further result of the operation of relay IA is the closure of a circuit, from ground on start conductor ST in cable 52 (applied by key 9, Fig. A1') through armature 4 of relayvIA and its front contact, armature `2 of relay IB and its back Contact, to battery through the winding of register magnet IR. The magnet IR accordingly energizes to op-` erate its associated punch to recordthe time of the making'of the report call from the rst report station.

. B7. Relay 1B operates The winding of relay IB is energized by virtue of its connection between the front contact ofv armature 3 of relay 4 and battery. AThe operation of relayIB is preferably retarded, as by a copper collar surrounding the core at the armature end thereof, as indicated by the shaded upper portion. Accordingly, the operation of relay IB is delayed for a sufficient time to secure an effective energization of the magnet of register IR, followingr which relay IB is operated.

Upon operating, relay IB disconnects the magnet of register IR at the back contact of armature 2 to release the associated punching mechanism, the overall result being the vpunching of a dot in the recording paper. y At the front contact of its armature 2, relay IB closes a self-locking circuit to conductor ST, through contacts of relay IC, so as to remain operated thereafter independentof the front contact ofarmature 3 of relay IA.

B8. Call buzzer 4 sounds At armature I of relay IB, ground potential (through the front contact of armature 3 of re-l lay IA) is applied to conductor BU in cable 52, thereby operating the call buzzer 4 at the supervising station, through contacts of relay 2, to give the supervisor an audible indication of the report call.

At armature 5 of relay IB, a circuit path is established from the flasher lead FL, through the back contact of armature 5 of'relay IC, and over conductor LI of cable 52, to line lamp Il' at the supervising station. Accordingly, this lamp starts to flash because ground potential is applied intermittently to the flasher lead FL by the flasher 20. It is to be noted that ground potential isv normally connected to iiasher lead FL through the winding of control relay 52, this windingbe'- ing shunted across the a'sher. The winding of relay 2I is preferably of suiliciently high resistance that alamp such as I3 is not effectively lighted in series with the winding. Relay 22, however, is capable of operation in serieswith a line lamp. Relay 22, being slow-operating as indicated, does not at this time respond to the clos.- ure of this flasher circuit, because such circuit rerelay IC.

B9.` Relay IC operates As afurther result of the operation of'relay mains closed only momentarily, and is opened by IB, a circuit is closed, at the front contact of armature 3 thereof, for relay IC. This circuit includes the contact of armature 6 oi relay IA,`

normally closed contacts controlled by armature 3 of each succeeding C relay, such as 2C and LC,

B10. Call lamp II' lights At its armature 5, relay IC transfers conductor LI from the flasher lead FL to ground, thereby preventing operation of slow-acting control relay 22; terminating the momentary hashing operation; and lighting the line lamp II steadily to indicate to the supervisor that a call is beingA received from a report station in its regular order of sequence.

Bll. Timer relay 25 restores At the back contact of its armature 4, relay- IC opens the previously traced circuit for the normal-interval timing relay 25, whereupon this relay restores to normal condition. Ordinarily, this timer-cutoil" operation occurs before the timer relay has had timer to fully operate its armature and bring in an alarm.

At the front contact of its armature 2, relay IC extends ground potential fromv conductor ST to armature 3 of relay 2B to prepare for the operation of relay 2C associated with the secondwatchman report station.

At its armature I, relay IC opens the selflocking circuit of relay iB, again placing relay IB under the direct control of the associated relay IA and permitting relay IB to restore along with relay IA when the watchman replaces his receiver.

B12. Connection extended to supervising station As a further result of the described operation of relay IA, armatures I and 2 thereof extend the conductors of the line associated with substation 30, over conductors TI and RI in cable 52, to the lever contacts of the #l answer key II at the supervisor station.

If the supervisor has decided to converse with the watchman upon his report vfrom substation 3D, he will have actuatedthe key Il to disconnect the local branch of the tone lead TO, and to extend conductors Tl and RI to the talking conductors associatedr with the supervisors subset I. Otherwise, the supervisor will not have operated key I I.

, B13. The azz-clear Sigma.

If the supervisor has not acted to prevent it, an all-clear tone signal is transmitted back to substation 30 from the tone' conductor 26,y

Upon hearing this all-clear tone signal,V thev watchman may replace the receiver at substation 30 and proceed toward the next reporting'si'ay tion. It may be noted that tone-cutoff key IU permits the supervisor to disconnect vthe tone source from all answer keys and thus insure a verbal f kreport from the watchman lon his report call age'zogsseff from thevnext 'stationgirrespectve -of from-:which station. such` call may be fnade..

B14. Call-duration timing With reiaysfland Icoperated, thewindine of the-short-interval-timer 26 is energizedoyer lead T3, y through the front contacts. of n arma- -ture4of relays IB- and IC, the :backcontactsof armature 4.0i relays 2C and LC, and start conductorvST.v Relay 23 doesnothave-time to complete itsoperation except when the receiver-is` left v01T the'hook at .the reporting stationafor a longer interval than is-.normally required for a report call.`

When the-receiver is replaced at substation 30,.

line -relay 34 restores andopen-circuits lockout relayl 35 and relay-1A, whichI restorezazmoment later. Relay IA--'disconnects the`V talking conductors of the associated line vfrom. conductors TI and RIU/in cable 52,.,andat itsA armature 3 it open-.circuits buzzer v4.- Relay IA alsotopen-,circuitsrelay IB at its armature 4. Relay;.IB restores a moment later.

.1315; Timing-for station. twat I At the 'back contact of .its armature 4, relay IB closes a new circuit for the normal-interval timing relay 25,`1whichincludes-the front contact of. .armature 4 of relay IC. Relay,24,which has restored inthe interval ldurngwhichrelays IBIaud IC Were bothoperated, is reenergized `tostart a new operation to time the intervalubetween. the. Watchmans visit to the first report station. and. his visit to the secondreport station.

` C. Reporting from*v the vsecond .station 'f When the Watchman reaches the second station. (not shown) and'makes his report'call therefrom,

When the watchman replaces the receiverl at the 2 second report station and thereby' causes-f relays SZA; and ,ZB-,to restore :sequentially faswzde-v scribed in connection with relays 1 IAr and f I B, relay 2C is left locked Operated alone. l Relay 23013611?" circuits buzzer 4 and timer relayJZIi.;v

, A circuit is now closed, throughzthe.frontvcon tact of armature 4 of, relayZCand Athe back con-v tact of armature 4 Of relay ZBQfor timing the travel offthe lwatc'hman from-the'fsecond reporting` statint the thirdr'eporti'ngf statiom It may VbeI 'assumed'that the-distance fromthe sec-'- ondreporting sta-tion tothe'` third reporting-'sta'- tion is longer than the-normal travel distance,-f`in" which-event -theback contact of Aarmature '4f-off relay 2B is jumper-connected to the associated terminal of timer conductor `T2 instead of to the the operation oi `relay 2A'occurs as describedior relay IA. This operation results in the momen` tary energization of `register magnet 2R`i injthe. extension of vthetallsing conductors of the second report station to conductorsT2 and R2 'in cable. 52; and in the operation of relay2B. 'I'he operation of relay 2B results in the closure .of a

circuit for the call buzzer 4, yand in the closure of forlinelamp I2'.. .V With' relay IC of.. the first-station'.,groupH operated and locked,`the. operation of relay 2B results in the closure of a circuit for relay 2C, from' the grounded start conductor ST,` through con tacts 2, 6and 3 of relays IC, 2A, and 2B.. Relay 2C thereupon operates to light the second-station line lamp I2" steadily; opens the self-locking circuit 'of relay 2B;. again restores the vnormal interval timer 25 and starts the short-interval timer 23 and, at its armature 2, prepares for lthe operation of the C relay at the next report sta*- tion. in the prearranged order of sequence.

` At its armature 43, relay 2C'closes a self-locking circuit, at the same time opening the self-locking circuit of relay IC. Relay IC accordingly restores, opening the initial operating circuit of relay 2C and its armatureZ, leaving relay 2CY enerlgizeduin its: self-lockingJ circuit. Attheesame,

timeg-relay. i I C, at the front contacty of its armature 57i-disconnects ground .potential Y from z ,conf-Y ductorfLI ,f thereby vextinguishing .linellampA I 3 .Toi the. preceding fstation, which lamp has-.beenheld lightedssteadily. to .indicate to thesupervisor the. lest station from whichthe Watchmanreported.vv

Relays 4IAto IC of theufirstyrgroup are all. in.. restoredleondition, .A and. relays .2A/1t@ 2G of. :the second' group `are .all.. inoperated. conditionyline amomentary,flashinggcircuit over conductor L2 terminal of timer vconductor TI. Accordingly,

'the'winding of timer-relay 24 'is-now energized,

and thisv relay'l is set for-*a longer delay period as previously noted.

With relay ZC maintained locked operated, kthe second-station line lamp I4 is maintained lighted steadilyet the-front contact yotarmature 5of relay'ZC fte showlthe supervisorthe laststation fromwhicha report call was" made.

l D,4A Reporting from the llast station When the watchman lmakes his report from 'the last Stationen thefrouta relays LA, LB,and LC are'voperatedsequentially infthe manner describedforv 'the similar precedingre'lays. Thev last istation; line lampi I3A islightedsteadily over con-` ductor LLinicablevL-.rromlthe front contact of armature 5 of relay LC.l At its armature 3,y relay LC= locks itself t0 the startv conductor'ST in cable 52,1. through.Y the backfcontact cfr-'armature 6 .of

- returnI of; the Watchman `from thelaststation--to the first. I 1

E. Subsequent reports Whenjther Watchman again reaches the frst reportV station; the second call from/subset 3Ii-re sults` in the-sequentialoperation of relays IAfto' IC-as previously described l The .chainv circuit over which relay-' IC was. in-1 itially operated-0n the rst `cl'all lisl noti available at thisftime=being held open at the normallyclosecl contacts of arma-ture 3 of the operatedrelay LC.

The circuit over: which relay 'I C" operates von .any subsequent first-station report is from groundon start conductor. ST through the front 4contacter armature 2 of: relay LCLand the front. contact of. armature 3 oft-relays, IB, t0 .the .Winding vof re- 'lay IC. V l,

Upon. the .reoperation of; relay. I C, thel Opening of contacts unlocks andsrestoresrelay LC; The: restoration rof: relay LC reclosesi the chain. circuit through .the rcontacts `controlled by armatures 3,A

ofthe.` -AC` relays to. establish a locking circuit for. relay.l `IC,.throughvI.he front contact of its arma. ture Otherwise, :the-operations attending. the

lamp I.2":is lighted steadily;zandstheean buzzenaf is soundingll F. Terminating' the watch `period,

When thewatchman makes his nal report call at the end of the watch period, the supervisor may restore the start key 9, thereby open-circuiting and restoring any operated ones of the B and C relays in the route-control equipment I and otherwise returning the circuit conditions to normal. v

G. Abnormal operations y Certain abnormal operations and conditions which may occur during the watch period Wiil now be discussed.

G1. Receiver not replaced at report station If the watchman, after having made a report call from a station, fails to replace the receiver thereat until after the elapse of an interval longer than that for which the short-interval timer 23 is set, such timer completes its operation to sound an alarm indicative of the fact. For example, when the report isy being made .in regular sequence at the first station, with relays IB and IC operated, ground potential from start conductor ST over the armature-4 chain of the C and B relays is extended, through the front contacts of armature 4 of relays IC and IB, to the timer lead T3, energizing the winding of relay 23. Ordinarily, this circuit is opened when relays IB and IC restore responsive to the receiver being replaced at subset 30. But, if the watchman forgets to replace the receiver at the concerned substation when he leaves to go to the next station, relay 23 operates fully at the end of a comparatively short interval (1/2 a minute, for

example). It thereupon places ground potential on the associated alarm conductor AL2, thereby energizing relay 22 to disconnect the tone lead 26 from the tone conductor TO in cable. 52, whereby the watchman will not receive the allclear signal when he calls in from the next station but will be required to wait until he converses with the supervisor.

The placing of ground potential on alarm conductor AL3 in cable 52 results in the closure of an illuminating circuit for the alarm-signal lamp l', through the winding of the low-resistance pilot relay 3. Lamp 'I' becomes lighted to inform the supervisor of the specific alarm condition, while relay 3 closes a circuit, through contacts of relay 2, for the alarm bell 5 to sound an audible alarm.

Upon noting the alarm-2 condition, the supervisor may terminate the vsounding of the audible alarm by actuatingV the alarm-2 cutoff key 1. Alarm-control relay 3 is thereby restored, but alarm-signal lamp l' remainsv lighted through the alternate contact of Akey 1 until the receiver is replaced at the concerned substation.

When the watchman reports from the next substation, the supervisor can inform him that the receiver has not been replaced at the preceding substation and request him to return to that station and replace .the receiver. `When this has been done, the circuit of timer relay 23 is opened,

whereupon this relay restores and permits relay 22 to restore. Tone lead 2t is thereby reconnected to tone lead TO, and lamp 'I' is extinguished. The supervisor may now restore key l.

If the watchman has in fact replaced his receiver at the lconcerned substation from which the alarm was given as above described, and the condition results from a faulty condition of the concerned subscriber line, the B relay of the concerned relay set remains operated and timer relay 23 remains energized, along with relay 22. In this event, the supervisor may maintain key l operated, keeping lamp I lighted while relay 3 is permitted to be restored to keep the audible alarm from sounding. So long as this abnormal condition obtains, the system will have to be operated by close cooperation between the supervisor and the watchman without the benefit of the all-clear tone, which is maintained disconnected at the contacts of relay 22.

Also, when the watchman has completed the current round and returned to the station associatedwith the out-of-order line, he will be un able to call in over the 'line if it is still out of order. If he desires, the supervisor may summon an investigator to determine the source of the trouble on the line in question.

G2. Delay in reporting In the event that the watchman delays unduly long in reporting from the next station along his prescribed route,'the concerned one of the two timers 24 and 25 is given time to complete its operation and close its contacts, thereby grounding alarm conductor ALI, and operating relay 22 to disconnect the tone lead 26. Alarm lamp 6 is lighted through the normal contact of key 6, and through the winding of pilot relay 3. Alarm bell 5 is sounded responsive to the operation of relay 3.

By the operation of key B to its alternate position, relay 3 is restored to disconnect the audible alarm, while lamp E remains lighted so long as the alarm condition endures.

The supervisor is expected to actuate tonecutoi key Il! to maintain the all-clear tone source disconnected after the watchman iinally reports from the next station. When this report is made and the concerned A and B relays operate, the

, operated'one of the timer relays 24 and 25 is restored, whereupon relay 22 restores and lamp 6' becomes extinguished. The supervisor may then l restore the key 6 to transfer the associated alarm conductor back to the audible alarm circuit.

`The supervisor may now actuate the concerned one ,of the answer keys, such as II to I3, to converse with the watchman. Upon the removal of the receiver (not shown) at the supervisors subset I, relay 2l is operated to disconnect the call buzzer 4 and the alarm bell 5. The supervisor may then receive the report froml the watchman and ascertain Why he was late in making the report.

RepOTtillg OM 0f Sequence In the event that the watchman reports from a station out of its proper sequence, a flashing line-lamp signal is given to the supervisor informing him of the station from which the watchman is reporting; the audible alarm bell 5 is sounded; alarm lamp 8' is lighted to indicate that an out-ofsequence report'is being received, as distinct from some other alarm condition; and the clear tone is disconnected. For example, if the watchman reports from the second station at a time (either onthe initial round or on some other round of afer-assez' his Watchperiod): whenthe rst vstation is the one next-inthe order ofsequence, relays y2A anvdxZBl operatefin"succession-as described, butlrelay 2C? does notoperate lbecause itsv circuit is :maintained open1at-..the Pfront Contact :of armature 2 fof the f unoperatedrelay IC associated with the r'st station. With relay 2C being prevented from ."oper atingythefinitially closed flashing circuit forlamp IZTremains-closed and therlamp I2! flashes. vThe flashing'vcircuit of -f this lamp is vthrough the back contact` Zoff armature 5 of. relay'2C, .the front ccntact ofvarmature :offy relay l 2B, .flash' `lead FL, to ground vthrough theflash. interrupter I Relay i 2 I,"connected in shuntsof the flasher 20, becomes operated inseries with the lamp I2'A during an open period. of kthe flasher `2l). Relay l2| remains operated during the fclosed lperiod` of the flasher.

Watchman, While iti grounds alarm conductorAL3 atits upper-armature to light theas'sociated alarm lamp. fthroughthe Windingsof pilotrelay 3.,-.The' audiblek alarm bell 5 is operated, throug-hicontacts. ofz relay t3, along with the call buzzer 4fwhichis. operated over leadBU incable 52, throughcon-` tactsof relays 2A and 2B. l

Upon noting the flashing `condition oflinelamp` I2', the lighted condition of alarm-signal lamp 8'-, and. hearing the alarm` bell` 5, the supervisor removes the receiver at his subsetl I, whereuponA relay 2 operates to disconnectbuzzerl and Abell 5. i

Upon actuating answer key I2,'thevsupervisor is placed f in telephonie communication. .with the` Watchmanand is'able to ascertain Why'vhe' called. next. inthe from: a station `other than the yone order'of'sequence.

If, for example, the last station on the route is'4 the one: from Whichthe watchmanlast report-y ed, this'fact Will-be indicated to the supervisor by the `steadily lighted condition of. larr1p-,It",its`

circuit beingfthrough the front contactofv armaturel 5 of relay LC. Thesupervisor may inform the Watchman that the nextstation lfromvvhich he should report is station I.

When the Watchman vreplaces ythe receiver at the station from-Which he reported out of sequence, the resulting restorationbf the associatedy A relay (relay 2A in the` assumed example) leaves the associated relay 2B locked operatedthrough thev back contact of armature I' of the unoperatedrelay 2C. The alarm-3 condition,` andthe flashing;

oi' line lamp .l2'f are thereby eontinuedfor the time being. l

When the Watchman hassuitably. corrected'his error, andhas reported from `the stationin question in its proper sequence, relay 2C (inthe as- Asumed example)v is operated through the front contacts Ofarmaturev 2` of relay IC, armature 6 ofrelay 2A, and armature 3 of relay 2B'. The flashing'of lamp I2 is thereby terminated,` and relay 2|` restores a moment later. Groundpotentialais thereby removed from Ialarm conductor` AL3 ex tinguishing alarm lamp 8 at the supervising station.

f In the event that the Watchman called .from a station out of `its normal sequence because a trouble condition at the next station in the order.

of sequenceprevented a successful report call therefrom, he may so report to the supervisor who may-thereupon actuate the key8to'its' alternate.;

position't :transfer thecircut vof lamp 8.-' always from the pilot relay 3 to restore this relay, While'vv alarm conductorAL3 remains groundedfand lamp fwremains lighted through-the alternate contact of =key ,8.1, In thisV event, the supervisor m'ay'finF structl thewatchman to" continue on'his prescribed course, However, *nov C relay-Willlbe able to' oper-- ate-asa result of. reports fromvfstations 'Subsequently visited. As a result, allofthe Barclays' at f the stations., from which, the out-,ofrseq'uence reports are vm'aderernain lockedl operated, and a flashing circuitis closed for eachnewlylighted linelamp. v I' v A' jf When the Watchman has madehis report from? the last stationfalong'the=route, thesupervis'ormay'temporarily restore the startkey 9, thereby restoring all operated Bf andC relays and releas-v ing any operatedones of the alarmcontrol relays proceeds in the described manner, as an initial cycle,A` until-the stationwith' which the defective If the Watchman is again vunable to make a suc;

cessfulreport call fromithestation in question-,f

van out-olsequence "alarmv is again sounded -vvhenV he reaches the'next succeeding station in the route and makes 'his f report call. vThe special operations described may then be repeateduntil the current-'round of operationsresult'sfin a reportY callfrom-the final station; The start key 9 may' again'be temporarily `restored tofst'art'the follow--l ing-round as aninitial round of operations.

l-I,` Normalytelelphone serviceduring the 1 watch period i. y i

Any one 'of the substations vof thesystenji. may be used for normaltelephone service by ,persons happening to be on fthe premises during .the Watch. period., For example, "between reports lof.v the` Watchman atthe rs't Watchman s tation,`the dial subset 3D may be used for initiating and receiving normal telephone calls. v. e

As an incidentto calls from subsetv 30 byIpersons vother than the Watchman, an opencircuit condition .may occasionally be encountered, re?. su1ting,. for example, from, a defective holding circuit at a connectorr seized b'y a selector ,such as SE.v Such a condition may cause thelinefcir" cuitJLCI' to be placed in /a'locko'ut condtionas previouslydescribed (relays 34 and'35 operated; relay 36 restored). kSuch ra condition'is .rarely encountered in a properly maintained installa-l tion.` l Moreover, since. the common conductor .4l is energized onlymoinentarily, incident to a .report call as described, an open-circuit-'induced lockout condition rof linel circuit LC I. rarely causes',

relay IA `to operate, particularly` if. the. callingr subscriber' replaces the. receiver With reasonable promptness after the accidental lockout condition' occurs.`

I. Supervising a plurality of watchman* Ifa plurality/ofwatchmen are employed,l eachmaybe assigned tota separate route;- Af-fseparate' route-controllrelay equipment5l is provided for each watchmans route.; :Eachsuch equipment; may be yconnected by its'own cable suchV asfSZ-.toits own supervisory equipment lattheusame, :on another,.supervisingstation.

Conductor III'.v iszz Vmultiply-r,.cormectedr indi-.i`

cated, to each of the route-control relay equipments l,

To provide for the rare intervals when two watchman initiate report calls at about the same instant, one or more additional report trunk circuits RTC may be provided. The conductor 4| is multiply connected to each, as indicated.Y This provision permits all the watchmen to use the same report number.

J. Using a 10U-line telephone system A 10D-line automatic telephone system (one lacking selectors, and employing a single group of connectors) may be used in connection with the disclosed Watchman supervisory equipment. The only change necessary is to render the report trunk circuit accessible to the connectors, and to arrange the connectors to "switch through, when the report number is dialed. Switching-through connectors are well known.

I claim:

l. In a watchman supervisory automatic telephone system, a subscriber line arranged to serve as a watchman report line, said line having a line circuit individual thereto including a line relay, a cutoff relay, and a lockout relay; callextending automatic switching devices common to said subscriber line and to other subscriber lines; said line relay being operable responsive to removal of the receiver on the associated line to cause an idle one of said switching devices to become connected with such line, said cuto and lockout relays operating responsive to said connection, said cutoff relay being thereupon effective to disconnect and restore said line relay, means responsive to the calling of a preassigned report numberover the connected subscriber line for correspondingly operating the connected automatic switching device, means responsive to such operation for open-circuiting said cutoff and lockout relays -while the receiver on the calling line is still unreplaced, means for delaying the restoration of the lockout relay until after the cutoff relay has restored, the line relay reoperating upon vbeing reconnected 4by the cutoff relay, a supervisory station, and means controlled jointly by said line and lockout relays in operated condition for maintaining the lockout relay in operated condition, and for extending aconnection from the associated line to said supervisory station.

2. In a watchman supervisory automatic telephone system as set forth in claim 1, the means for extending connection from the concerned subscriber line to the supervisory station including an extending relay individual to such line, relay equipment accessible through any of said automatic switching devices responsive to the calling of said report number, said relay equipment being effective, when seized, to assume a temporary extending condition coincidental With the said open-circuiting of the cutoff and lockout relays, and anoperating circuit for said extending relay effective depending upon the associated line and lockout relays being both in operated condition during the existence of said temporary extending condition. l

3.A In a watchman supervisory system wherein report stations are provided along the watchmans route, relays corresponding respectively to said stations and arranged to be operated in a predetermined order of sequence, and means for operating a relay responsive to a report'call from the corresponding station depending upon the next preceding relay in the predetermined order of sequence being in operated condition.

4. In a' watchman supervisory system as set forth in claim 3, a supervisory station including signal-display devices corresponding respectively to said relays, and means for causing any one of said devices to display a signal depending upon the corresponding relay being in operated condition.

5. In a watchman supervisory system wherein report stations are provided along the watchmans route, relays corresponding respectively to said stations and arranged to be operated in a predetermined order of sequence, means for operating a given relay responsive to a report call from the corresponding station depending upon the next preceding relay in the predetermined order of sequence being in operated condition, and means responsive to the operation of said given relay for restoring the said next preceding relay.

6. In a watchman supervisory system wherein report stations are provided along the watchmans route, relays corresponding respectively to said stations, and arranged to be operated in a predetermined order of sequence from first to last, means for operating the first relay responsive to a report call from the corresponding station at a time when all other ones of said relays are in unoperated condition, means lfor operating any succeeding one of said relays responsive to a report call from the corresponding station, depending upon -the next preceding relay in the predetermined order of sequence being in oper-l ated condition, and means responsive to the operation of any one of said relays after the iirst for restoring the next preceding relay.

`7. In a watchman supervisory system as set forth in claim 6, means for reoperating the rst relay in .the order of sequence depending upon the last relay in the order of sequence being in operated condition, and means responsive to the reoperation of the iirst relay for restoring the last relay.

8. In a watchman supervisory system wherein report stations are provided along the watchmans route, relay sets corresponding respectively to said station, said relay sets being arranged to receive report calls from said stations in a predetermined order of sequence, means for operating a iirst portion of Ithe relays of a set responsive to any report call from .the corresponding station, and means for operating the remaining :portion of the relays of such set responsive to any such report call, depending upon the corresponding portion of the next preceding relay set in the predetermined order of sequence having been operated. A

9. In a watchman supervisory system wherein report stations are provided along the watchmans route, route-control equipment arranged to receive report calls from said stations in a predetermined order of sequence, a supervisory station con-taining signal-display means, means in said route-control equipment responsive to a report call from one of said stations for causing said display means to display the identity of the concerned station by one or another of two distinctive signals depending uponwhether the concerned station is or is not the next station in the predetermined order of sequence.

l0. In a watchman supervisory system wherein report stations are provided along the watchmans route, route-control equipment arrangedto receive report calls from said stations in a predetermined order of sequence, a supervisory station containing signal-display means, .means insa-id route-control equipment .responsive to a 'report ...call-from .tany one osaidstations yfor causing saiddisplay means to display :the .identitypf fthe-concerned station, and means :responsive .tto such repent call rorfterminating fthe display uf the identity fof; the :station next preceding in -the saidworderiof.- sequence, `depending upon :reports .having .been .received in .the ,.said `order of I sequence kkfrom `all preceding stations;

' 1L .In .a watchman supervisory system wherein report stations :are -provided .-:alongnthe y:watchmanfs route; route-.#contrcllv equipment arranged to receive-reportmcalls trom .saidrfstations in a .predetermined :order lof sequence, .a supervisory station containing1signal-Jdisplay fmeans, .means in said route-control :equipmentfresponsive to .a .report :call .from :any fonefrofn-said:stations kfor causing said display means; lto displaythe v identity of the concerned station by onenor 4another of twcdistinctive lsignals depending upon whether the concerned station is or is not the next one in the said order of sequence, and means responsive to such report call for terminating thedisplay of the identity of the station next preceding in the said order of sequence, depending upon reports having been received in the said order of sequence from all preceding stations,A whereby the identity of the last station from which a report call was received in the said order of sequence is distinctively displayed, and the identity of each station from which a report call has been received subsequently is distinctively displayed.

12. In a watchman supervisory system wherein report stations are provided along the watchmans route, control equipment arranged to receive report calls from said stations in a predetermined order of sequence, a supervisory station 4containing display signals assigned respectively other energizing conductor.

13. In a watchman supervisory system wherein report stations are provided along the watchmans route, control equipment arranged to receive report calls from said stations in a predetermined order of sequence, a supervisory station containing display signals assigned respectively` to said stations, a pair of energizing conductors,l means in said control equipment responsive to a report call from any one of said report stations for energizing the corresponding display signal over one or the other of said energizing conductors, depending upon whether the concerned station is or is not the next one in the said order of preference, and a flashing device interconnected with one of said energizing conductors to eiect a distinctive energization of any display *signal energized over such conductor..

14. In a watchman supervisory system wherein report stations are provided along the watchmans route, control equipment arranged to receive report calls from said stations in succession, a timing device arranged to be operated from a normal position to an alarm position responsive to the elapse of a time interval of sumcient length to permit the Watchman to travel from one sta- :tion ftoethenext and tomake areportcall from `the latter, .means responsive :to themakingof .a report from a station -for restoring said timingdeviceto ,its .normal :position and for preventing it from proceeding toward its alarm position so long as "the-:report gcallvendures. saidhtim'ing fdeviceI :beinglagain started fromV 'its 4normal position toward its l alarm position y,responsive-to the ltermination Adffsuchy ..report.cal1, :and means. responsive tothe arrival of said ftiming device in its alarm position for sounding an alarm indicative .of --the .-fact that the watchman ;is :late in t.making -thenext report-call.

1 `r15. -In aswatchman supervisory system wherein `report stations .are provided along the Watchmans route,v control .equipmentfarranged vto re- `ceive report calls-from vsaid stations successively, a pairofftimingsdevices, `each arrangedtobe op.-

;erated :from a normal @position tto .an v.alarm posi- :tien ,responsive vtox the ,f elapserof :a predetermined ward its alarm position d'uring any report 'cal1,:

means responsive to the beginning of a report cal1 from any station for restoring the iirst timing device to its normal position .and for starting the second, means responsiveto the termination of such report call for restoring the second timing device to its normal position and for starting the first, and means responsive to the arrival of either of said timing devices in its alarm position for sounding an audible alarm indicative of a prolonged delay in terminating a reportl call or in making the next one.

16. In a watchman supervisory system wherein report stations are provided along the watchmans route, control equipment arranged to receive report calls from said stations in a given sequence, said control equipment comprising separate portions assigned respectively to said vstations, means responsive to the receipt of areport call from any one of said stations for actuating the corresponding portion of said control equipment, a normal-interval timing device and a longer-interval timing device, means responsive to the actuation of-one of said portions for closing an operating circuit for one or the other of said timing devices to time the interval elapsing between the current report call and thereport call from the next succeeding station, means for permitting either timing device to be started responsive to the actuation of any of said portions, the onestarted depending upon the *required travel time of the watchman from the concerned station to the next succeeding station,'and means responsive to either timer completing its operation for sounding an audible alarm indicative of an unpermitted delay in the making of the next report ca l.

17. In a watchman supervisory system wherein report stations are provided along the Watchmans route, route-control equipment arranged hemay thereupon terminate such call and proceed to the next station, and means eiective incidental tothe making of a report call from a station out of said given order of sequence for preventing the transmission of said all-clear signal.

18. In a `Watchman supervisory system as set forth in claim 17, means for specially calling to the attention ofthe supervisor at said supervisory to .receive report calls from said stations in a i predetermined order of sequence, a supervisory station .containing :display signals assigned respectively to said stations, said route-control equipment including a separate relay set for each of the report stations, each such set including .three relays, the `iirst relay of a set being respon?- sive to a report call to extend a telephone connection from the reporting station to the supervisory station, the second relay of a set being responsive tothe first relay to transmit a common signal to the supervisorys'tation indicative of the fact that a report call is being received, and the third relay being responsive to the second relay to transmit a signal to the supervisory station indicative of the specific report station from which the report call is being received* 20. In awatchman supervisory system as set forth in claim 19, time register devices corresponding respectively to said report stations, and means controlled jointly by a pair of'y the relays assigned to any report station for causing the corresponding time register device to record the time of the receipt of a report call from the concerned station.`

' BERT A. WALLACE. 

